U.S. patent application number 14/851873 was filed with the patent office on 2017-03-16 for social network service for semiconductor manufacturing equipment and users.
The applicant listed for this patent is Lam Research Corporation. Invention is credited to Henry T. Chan, David J. Hemker, Chung Ho Huang, Chad R. Weetman.
Application Number | 20170078238 14/851873 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 58238927 |
Filed Date | 2017-03-16 |
United States Patent
Application |
20170078238 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Huang; Chung Ho ; et
al. |
March 16, 2017 |
Social Network Service for Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment
and Users
Abstract
Methods and systems for sharing information related to
operational metrics of a plurality of equipment used in
manufacturing of semiconductor wafer includes interfacing a server
with the equipment to allow the server to receive a plurality of
parameters including operational metrics associated with operation
of each of the plurality of equipment. The plurality of parameters
are processed to identify event-related data, message-related data
and to generate human-readable interpretation for the identified
event-related data and the message related data. Users are
identified for receiving the operational metrics of each of the
plurality of equipment. The event-related data, message-related
data and the corresponding human-readable interpretation for the
operational metrics associated with each of the equipment are
forwarded to a social network service for performing a posting
operation to social data streams associated with the identified
users. The operational metrics received over time from each of the
equipment are managed so as to provide timely updates to the
respective users on the status of each equipment. The timely
updates are provided as additional postings to the respective
social data streams of the users.
Inventors: |
Huang; Chung Ho; (Fremont,
CA) ; Chan; Henry T.; (Fremont, CA) ; Weetman;
Chad R.; (Fremont, CA) ; Hemker; David J.;
(Fremont, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Lam Research Corporation |
Fremont |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
58238927 |
Appl. No.: |
14/851873 |
Filed: |
September 11, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 50/01 20130101;
H01L 21/67276 20130101; H04L 51/046 20130101; H04L 65/403 20130101;
G01M 99/00 20130101; G06Q 50/04 20130101; H04L 51/32 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04L 12/58 20060101
H04L012/58; H01L 21/67 20060101 H01L021/67; H04L 29/06 20060101
H04L029/06; G01M 99/00 20060101 G01M099/00 |
Claims
1. A system, comprising: a server that is configured to be
interconnected with a plurality of equipment used for manufacturing
semiconductor wafers, the server includes, an interface to
communicatively connect each of the plurality of equipment with the
server, the interface configured to allow receiving, at the server,
a plurality of parameters that are associated with operation of
each of the plurality of equipment, wherein the plurality of
parameters include operational metrics generated at the equipment
during processing of the semiconductor wafers; an interpreter
module executing on the server configured to receive, process the
plurality of parameters, the interpreter module includes, a
semantic identifier logic to examine at least a portion of the
plurality of parameters of a specific equipment to identify
event-related data, message-related data contained within and to
identify a human-readable interpretation for the event-related
data, message-related data identified in the portion; a message
assembly logic to assemble the human-readable interpretation,
message-related data, event-related data for the specific equipment
into post data; and a social network service coupled to the
interpreter module, the coupling allows the interpreter module to
forward the post data to the social network service, the social
network service is configured to perform a posting operation of the
human-readable interpretation to social data streams associated
with one or more users that are authorized to receive information
related to the operational metrics of the specific equipment.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the interface is a web server
interface, a proprietary interface, a non-proprietary interface or
combinations thereof.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the interpreter module further
includes an event processor that is configured to, obtain
event-related data from the semantic identifier logic; examine the
event-related data to identify a trigger event contained within;
and associate tags related to the trigger event, wherein the tags
are obtained from an events library that maintains information
related to a plurality of pre-defined trigger events associated
with the plurality of equipment.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the semantic identifier logic is
configured to, examine a portion of string provided in the
plurality of parameters associated with a specific equipment to
identify a pattern that relates to a keyword, a phrase, a trigger
event, or a code contained therein; and provide the portion of
string with an identifier of the keyword, the phrase, the trigger
event or the code contained therein to the message assembly logic,
wherein the message assembly logic is configured to interact with a
message library to identify the human-readable interpretation for
the identifier provided by the semantic identifier logic, wherein
the message library stores a mapping of the identifier to the
corresponding human-readable interpretation for various strings of
the plurality of parameters that identify patterns related to
keywords, phrases, trigger events, and codes that are encountered
during processing of the semiconductor wafers.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein the social network service
includes, a post data manager to store the post data generated by
the message assembly logic into a data store; and a stream serving
module to retrieve the post data from the data store related to
each equipment for a user authorized to receive the post data, the
post data retrieved from the data store is formatted for rendering
in accordance to preferences of the user.
6. A method operated on a server that is configured to be
interconnected with a plurality of equipment used for manufacturing
semiconductor wafers, the method comprising: interfacing each of
the plurality of equipment with the server, the interfacing
configured to allow receiving of a plurality of parameters related
to operation of each of the plurality of equipment at the server,
wherein the plurality of parameters include operational metrics
generated at each of the plurality of equipment during processing
of the semiconductor wafers; during operation, receiving the
plurality of parameters from the plurality of equipment over a
period of time; processing the operational metrics included in the
plurality of parameters for each of the plurality of equipment to
identify event-related data or message-related data and to generate
human-readable interpretation for the event-related data or
message-related data provided in the operational metrics;
determining one or more users that are authorized to receive
information related to the operational metrics associated with each
of the plurality of equipment; forwarding the event-related data,
message-related data and corresponding human-readable
interpretation for the operational metrics generated at each of the
plurality of equipment to a social network service for performing a
posting operation to social data streams of the respective one or
more users; and managing the operational metrics received over time
from each of the plurality of equipment so as to provide timely
updates to the respective one or more users, the timely updates
being provided as additional postings to the social data streams of
the one or more users.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the interfacing is a proprietary
interface, a non-proprietary interface, a web server interface or
combinations thereof.
8. The method of claim 6, wherein processing the operational
metrics further includes associating one or more tags, the tags
used to identify any one of an equipment, a user, a notification
type, a severity level, a process status, or combinations
thereof.
9. The method of claim 8, further includes storing the
human-readable interpretation for the operational metrics received
from the plurality of equipment and the associated one or more tags
in a data store, the stored human-readable interpretation and the
associated tags retrieved and assembled for presenting in the
social data stream of a user, in response to a request from the
user.
10. The method of claim 6, wherein processing the operational
metrics further includes, analyzing the event-related data
contained within the operational metrics associated with a specific
equipment received over the period of time; and generating a
notification to the one or more users based on the analysis of the
event-related data, the notification including at least a
notification type and a severity level of an event identified in
the event-related data.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the notification type is
defined based on the severity level of the event identified in the
event-related data, the notification type is one of a posting, a
phone call, an email, a message alert or any combinations
thereof.
12. The method of claim 6, further includes, determining interest
level of the one or more users for each of the plurality of
equipment, the interest level used to promote the corresponding
postings in the social data streams of the one or more users,
wherein the interest level of each user is defined by attributes of
the user, number and type of interactions initiated by the user
over time for the postings related to specific one or more of the
plurality of equipment.
13. The method of claim 6, further includes, determining user
preferences of the one or more users for each of the plurality of
equipment; and posting human-readable interpretation for the
operational metrics of corresponding equipment to the social data
streams of the one or more user in accordance to the respective
user preferences.
14. The method of claim 6, wherein the social data streams provided
by the social network service includes options to allow the one or
more users to interact with one another to share information
related the operational metrics of specific one of the plurality of
equipment presented in the social data streams.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein providing options further
includes, providing a chat interface within the social data streams
to enable sharing of information related to the operational metrics
of the specific equipment with other users.
16. A method operated on a server that is configured to be
interconnected with a plurality of equipment used for manufacturing
semiconductor wafers, the method comprising: interfacing each of
the plurality of equipment with the server, the interfacing
configured to allow receiving of a plurality of parameters related
to operation of each of the plurality of equipment at the server,
wherein the plurality of parameters include operational metrics
generated at each of the plurality of equipment during processing
of the semiconductor wafers; during operation, receiving the
plurality of parameters from a first equipment over a period of
time; processing the operational metrics included in the plurality
of parameters to identify event-related data or message-related
data contained within and to generate human-readable interpretation
for the event-related data or message-related data provided in the
operational metrics of the first equipment; determining one or more
users that are authorized to receive information related to the
operational metrics associated with the first equipment; performing
a posting operation to social data streams of the one or more
users, wherein the posting operation causes postings of the
event-related data, the message-related data and the corresponding
human-readable interpretation of the first equipment to the social
data streams of the one or more users; and using information
provided in the postings to identify and adjust one or more process
inputs of a second equipment, wherein the second equipment is used
to perform a subsequent process operation on the semiconductor
wafers.
17. A method operated on a server that is configured to be
interconnected with a plurality of equipment used in a
manufacturing process, the method comprising: interfacing each of
the plurality of equipment with the server, the interfacing
configured to allow receiving of a plurality of parameters related
to operation of each of the plurality of equipment at the server,
wherein the plurality of parameters include operational metrics
generated at each of the plurality of equipment during the
manufacturing process; during operation, receiving the plurality of
parameters from the plurality of equipment over a period of time;
processing the operational metrics included in the plurality of
parameters for each of the plurality of equipment to identify
event-related data or message-related data and to generate
human-readable interpretation for the event-related data or
message-related data provided in the operational metrics;
determining one or more users that are authorized to receive
information related to the operational metrics associated with each
of the plurality of equipment; forwarding the event-related data,
message-related data and corresponding human-readable
interpretation for the operational metrics generated at each of the
plurality of equipment to a social network service for performing a
posting operation to social data streams of the respective one or
more users; and managing the operational metrics received over time
from each of the plurality of equipment so as to provide timely
updates to the respective one or more users, the timely updates
being provided as additional postings to the social data streams of
the one or more users.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present embodiments relate to manufacturing of
semiconductor wafer and more particularly to social sharing of
information generated by semiconductor equipment during operation
of manufacturing processes.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] A semiconductor wafer undergoes various process operations,
such as deposition, etching, cleaning, drying, etc., to generate a
semiconductor device, such as an integrated circuit (IC) chip. To
ensure a quality product, the various process operations and
operational conditions within the various semiconductor
manufacturing equipment used in the process, are monitored. Current
means of monitoring and tracking the processes and operational
conditions within the various semiconductor manufacturing equipment
include receiving operational parameters from various sensors
distributed in the equipment, rendering the operational parameters
in raw machine format, and using the operational parameters to
manually generate static graphs, tabular reports, etc., related to
the operation of the equipment. Deciphering the raw machine data
and/or generating the graphs and reports involve significant
investment in time and effort, as a user has to interpret the
operational parameters received from different manufacturing
equipment, analyze the interpreted operational parameters,
consolidate, and configure the data provided in the operational
parameters to a format, such as graphs, reports, etc., that others
users can comprehend. The generated graphs and reports are then
distributed to appropriate users to keep the users informed. The
current means do not facilitate user-user information sharing as
they isolate users from one another.
[0005] It is in this context that embodiments of the invention
arise.
SUMMARY
[0006] Embodiments of the disclosure define systems and methods
operated on a server that is configured to be interconnected with a
plurality of equipment used for manufacturing semiconductor wafers.
An application executing on the server is configured to receive
process parameters from equipment used in the manufacturing
process. These process parameters provide process status updates
related to operation of the equipment during the manufacturing
process. The application executing on the server includes
interpreter logic to interpret the process parameters that are
provided in raw machine format into human-readable format. The
human-readable interpretation of the process parameters are
provided to a social network service (SNS) that is interfaced with
the application to allow sharing of information related to the
process parameters in social data streams of one or more users. The
users are identified based on the users' attributes, users'
interactions in relation to the equipment, users' usage of the SNS,
or operation of the equipment. Process status updates are received
from the equipment over time, during the operation of the
equipment, which are interpreted into human-readable format and
updated to respective social data streams of the users in
substantial real-time as additional postings.
[0007] When the users connect to the SNS, the SNS provides the
related social data stream for the users that include postings of
process status updates generated by the equipment during its
operation. The postings could be presented in a format defined by
or for the user. Information provided in the postings may be used
by the users to interact with other users, to match the process
parameters of a first equipment with a second equipment to obtain
comparable process results, or as feed forward information to
adjust process inputs for a second equipment used in a subsequent
process operation.
[0008] In one embodiment a method is disclosed. The method is
operated on a server that is configured to be interfaced with a
plurality of equipment used for manufacturing semiconductor wafers.
The interfacing allows receiving a plurality of parameters that are
associated with operation of each of the plurality of equipment.
The plurality of parameters includes operational metrics generated
at each of the plurality of equipment during processing of the
semiconductor wafers. During operation, an interpreter module
executing on the server is configured to receive the plurality of
parameters from each of the equipment over time and process the
operational metrics included within to identify event-related data,
message-related data and to generate human-readable interpretation
for the identified event-related data and the message related data.
Users are identified for receiving the operational metrics
concerning the operation of each of the plurality of equipment. The
event-related data, message-related data and the corresponding
human-readable interpretation are forwarded to a social network
service for performing a posting operation to social data streams
associated with the identified users. The operational metrics
received over time from each of the equipment are managed so as to
provide timely updates to the respective users on the status of
each equipment. The timely updates are provided as additional
postings to the respective social data streams of the users.
[0009] In an alternate embodiment, a method is disclosed. The
method is operated on a server that is configured to be
interconnected with a plurality of equipment used for manufacturing
semiconductor wafers. The method includes interfacing each of the
plurality of equipment with the server. The interfacing is
configured to allow receiving, at the server, a plurality of
parameters that are associated with operation of each of the
plurality of equipment. The plurality of parameters includes
operational metrics generated at the plurality of equipment during
processing of the semiconductor wafers. An interpreter module
executing on the server is configured to receive the plurality of
parameters from a first equipment, process the plurality of
parameters to identify event-related data and message-related data
contained within, and to generate human-readable interpretation for
the event-related and message-related data of the first equipment.
Users are identified for receiving the human-readable
interpretation for the operational metrics generated by the first
equipment. A posting operation is performed to social data streams
associated with the identified users, wherein the posting includes
the human-readable interpretation of the operational metrics of the
first equipment. Information provided in the posting is used to
identify and adjust one or more process inputs for a second
equipment, wherein the second equipment is used to perform a
subsequent process operation on the semiconductor wafers. The
adjustment of the process inputs at the second equipment is used
for optimal processing of the semiconductor wafers at the second
equipment.
[0010] In another embodiment, a system is disclosed. The system
includes a server that is configured to be interconnected with a
plurality of equipment that are used for manufacturing
semiconductor wafers. The server includes an interface to
communicatively connect each of the plurality of equipment with the
server. The interface is configured to allow receiving, at the
server, a plurality of parameters that are associated with
operation of each of the plurality of equipment. The plurality of
parameters includes operational metrics generated at the respective
equipment during processing of the semiconductor wafers. An
interpreter module executing on the server is configured to receive
and process the plurality of parameters to identify event-related
data or message-related data and to provide human-readable
interpretation for the operational metrics generated at each of the
plurality of equipment over time. The interpreter module includes a
semantic identifier logic that is configured to examine at least a
portion of the plurality of parameters of each equipment to
identify event-related data, message-related data contained within
and to identify the human-readable interpretation of the
event-related, message-related data.
[0011] The interpreter module also includes a message-assembly
logic to assemble the event-related data, message-related data, and
corresponding human-readable interpretation for each equipment into
post data. A social network service is coupled to the interpreter
module. The coupling allows the interpreter module to forward the
post data to the social network service. The social network service
is configured to perform a posting operation of the post data to
social data streams associated with specific ones of users that are
authorized to receive the post data that includes the operational
metrics of each equipment.
[0012] In yet another embodiment, a method is disclosed. The method
is operated on a server that is configured to be interfaced with a
plurality of equipment used in a manufacturing process. The
interfacing allows receiving a plurality of parameters that are
associated with operation of each of the plurality of equipment.
The plurality of parameters includes operational metrics generated
at each of the plurality of equipment during the manufacturing
process. During operation, an interpreter module executing on the
server is configured to receive the plurality of parameters from
each of the equipment over time and process the operational metrics
included within to identify event-related data, message-related
data and to generate human-readable interpretation for the
identified event-related data and the message related data. Users
are identified for receiving the operational metrics concerning the
operation of each of the plurality of equipment. The event-related
data, message-related data and the corresponding human-readable
interpretation are forwarded to a social network service for
performing a posting operation to social data streams associated
with the identified users. The operational metrics received over
time from each of the equipment are managed so as to provide timely
updates to the respective users on the status of each equipment.
The timely updates are provided as additional postings to the
respective social data streams of the users.
[0013] As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, one
aspect of the disclosure is that certain postings made to the
social network service (SNS) are being initiated by equipment
tools, instead of only enabling users to post. The postings made by
the equipment include status information, condition information,
progress information, alerts, statistics, and other metrics. This
data is considered raw data that is generated by the equipment.
This raw data is then read by the server and processed to generate
human readable interpretation. The human readable interpretation
that is generated can include message data that can be included in
a post, alert data related to trigger events that can be added to a
post, or simply alerts related to trigger events.
[0014] An aspect of the disclosure, therefore, is enabling
equipment to provide data that will be used to generate posts to
the SNS. In some cases, the raw data can be formatted or
reconstructed into sentences or statements that are more
understandable to a human reader accessing the SNS. In other cases,
certain raw data can be posted along with the message, e.g., such
as data that does not need interpretation. For example purposes,
certain data, such as numeric data, may not need transformation to
human readable form, as that data is already human readable. The
SNS can therefore provide an easy to understand snapshot of
operation statistics of specific equipment, provided the user has
privileges to access the specific tools. Further yet, the SNS can
be customized for users, such that users can access different types
of historical data or metrics, generate reports, view graphs of
operation, see comments from other users related to alerts, faults
or progress, and further provide comments in response to certain
postings or comments by others.
[0015] Other aspects of the disclosure will become apparent from
the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the
principles of the disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] The disclosure may best be understood by reference to the
following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying
drawings.
[0017] FIG. 1 illustrates a simplified block diagram of flow of
information generated at a plurality of equipment used in the
manufacturing of semiconductor wafers, in one embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0018] FIG. 2 illustrates a simplified block diagram of an example
system architecture used to share information related to
operational metrics generated by a plurality of equipment during
manufacturing operation, in one embodiment of the disclosure.
[0019] FIG. 3 is a simplified block diagram illustrating flow of
data pertaining to operational metrics generated by a plurality of
equipment, through various modules of the example system
architecture illustrated in FIG. 2, in one embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0020] FIG. 4 illustrates a simplified block diagram of various
modules within an interpreter module used in the example system
architecture of FIGS. 2 and 3, in one embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0021] FIGS. 5A-5C illustrate example social data streams provided
by a social network service with information related to
semiconductor manufacturing equipment operation shared with a user,
in one embodiment of the disclosure.
[0022] FIG. 6 illustrates process flow operations of a method
followed for sharing information related to semiconductor
manufacturing equipment operation, in one embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0023] FIG. 7 illustrates process flow operations of a method
followed for sharing information related to semiconductor
manufacturing equipment operation, in an alternate embodiment of
the disclosure.
DESCRIPTION
[0024] Embodiments of the disclosure define systems and methods for
receiving and sharing information related to operation of
semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The systems allow receiving
process status updates from one or more semiconductor manufacturing
equipment used in semiconductor manufacturing operation at a
server, processing and presenting these equipment generated updates
in social data streams of users interested in receiving these
updates from such equipment. The updates received during operation
of equipment are provided to the users. In one embodiment, users
are identified based on their expressed interest, interactions
related to the equipment, user attributes, such as title,
responsibility, level, member of an organization, member of a
group, expertise, etc., or based on equipment operation. In
general, privilege settings can be set based on a user basis or
based on specific equipment. In some embodiments, user groups can
be created and users can be dynamically assigned access privileges
to specific tools or groups of tools.
[0025] In one embodiment, social data streams provide a user
interface through which the users may interact with one another,
post information related to specific equipment or fabrication
operation to be shared with other interested users, receive
notifications when the process updates identify a trigger event,
successful completion of process, etc. The systems facilitate
collaborative information sharing related to equipment(s) of
interest to the users.
[0026] Further, the systems allow users to identify other equipment
that are used in similar operations so as to leverage operational
metrics data sharing between such equipment in order to obtain
optimal process results. For example, data sharing can be used to
calibrate by matching process inputs of a first equipment with a
second equipment to obtain comparable and/or consistent process
results. In another example, the operational metrics from a first
equipment may be used as feed forward information to adjust process
inputs of a second equipment that is used to perform a subsequent
operation on a semiconductor wafer so as to obtain optimal results
from the manufacturing operations performed by the second
equipment.
[0027] The social data streams generated by a social network
service for sharing information may operate in a manner similar to
other social media streams generated by other social media
applications, in that a user interface provided at the social media
streams include options that allow users to interact with one
another. However, the social data streams of the current
embodiments differ from other social data streams in that each of
the plurality of equipment used in the semiconductor wafer
manufacturing process is a member of the social network alongside
the users and is configured to provide process status updates that
are presented as postings in the social data stream.
[0028] Each of the plurality of equipment, during operation,
provides a plurality of parameters in the form of raw,
machine-data. An interpreter module is used to process the raw,
machine-data of the parameters to identify event-related data,
machine-related data contained within and to generate a message
that includes human-readable interpretation of the machine-data.
The human-readable interpretation is provided as posts within the
social data streams of the users associated with the equipment,
thereby enabling an equipment-user interaction. User interaction to
the postings is enabled thereby allowing an user-user interaction.
The systems and methods thereby allow both machine-user and
user-user communication.
[0029] The information provided in the social data streams could be
used to learn a user's behavior toward process status updates
provided by different equipment used in the manufacturing process
of semiconductor wafers, and use this information to bring relevant
information to the user's notice. For example, the information
could be used to make suggestions to a user with regards to lots,
recipes or equipment that the user may be interested in based on
the user's interest in related lots, recipes or equipment. In
another example, the system may make suggestions to a user based on
interactions of other users that share similar user attributes. In
some embodiments, the system could streamline posting to the social
data stream of the respective users by emphasizing or
de-emphasizing certain ones of the status update posts, based on
the interactions of the user to similar prior posts. For example,
the user may have interacted more with status update posts from a
first equipment and less with status update posts of a second
equipment. In this example, the posts related to the first
equipment's status updates are emphasized more in the social data
stream of the user by prioritizing these posts higher than the
posts related to the second equipment. The status update posts
originating from the equipment and shared in social data streams
can be successfully used for process operation optimization.
[0030] FIG. 1 illustrates a simplified block diagram showing an
overview of flow of information originating from the equipment, in
one embodiment of the disclosure. A plurality of equipment 103 are
interfaced with a server 300 and provide the process parameters to
the server 300, during operation. The equipment 103 that are
interfaced with the server 300 are used during the manufacturing of
semiconductor wafers, for example. The process parameters that
include the operational metrics are provided in a raw, machine-data
format. An interpreter module (not shown) executing on the server
300 together with a social network service (SNS) 314 interprets the
raw, machine-data provided in the process parameters to generate
human-readable interpretation. The SNS 314 provides the
human-readable interpretation as posts in social data streams for
users 101 that are associated with the respective equipment. Users
101 may view process status update information provided in the
posts, request similar information for other equipment, interact
with other users to share information related to the posts and/or
provide information to influence process inputs of one or more
equipment so as to address any issues raised in the posts in order
to obtain optimal process results.
[0031] FIG. 2 illustrates a simple block diagram of an example
system architecture used for sharing information generated by one
or more equipment used in a manufacturing process of a
semiconductor wafer. The system includes a server 300 that is
interconnected with a plurality of equipment 103 that are used in
the manufacturing process of a semiconductor wafer. The
interconnection may be through a communication interface, such as
an equipment interface 301, or through an interface, such as a web
server 310. The equipment 103 may be connected to the equipment
interface 301 through a wired or wireless connection. In some
embodiments, the equipment interface 301 may use a semiconductor
equipment interface protocol, such as SECS/GEM (SEMI Equipment
Communications Standard/Generic Equipment Model), a protocol
developed by Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International
(SEMI), Equipment Data Acquisition (EDA) protocol, such as
Interface A protocol, etc., to allow the equipment 103 to
communicate with an application, such as an equipment social
interpreter application 312, hosted by the server 300. In the
embodiment where the interconnection is through the web server 310,
the equipment 103 may communicate with the equipment social
interpreter application 312 through an equipment client application
programming interface (API) 304. The equipment client API 304 may
be a generic or a proprietary API. The equipment interface 301
and/or web server 310/equipment client API 304 define a
communication interface that allows the process parameters
generated by the equipment 103, during process operation, to be
transmitted to the equipment social interpreter application
312.
[0032] In some embodiments, one or more of the equipment 103 used
in the manufacturing process of a semiconductor wafer may
optionally be interfaced with a control software application (not
shown), which in turn is interfaced with the server 300 through the
communication interface. The control software application may be
designed to receive process parameters from the interfaced
equipment during process operation and forward the same to the
equipment social interpreter application 312 on the server 300. In
some embodiments, the process parameters may be obtained through
one or more sensors, detectors, etc., (not shown) that are disposed
in, on or near the equipment 103. In some embodiments where the
control software is present, the control software may perform some
processing before forwarding the process parameters over a network
(not shown) and through the communication interface to the
equipment social interpreter application 312 on the server 300. For
example, as part of the processing, the control software may
identify and include tags with the process parameters, wherein the
tags may be used to identify the equipment that generated the
process parameters.
[0033] The equipment social interpreter application 312 is
configured to receive the process parameters from the plurality of
equipment 103 through the communication interface and process the
process parameters to identify operational metrics generated during
semiconductor wafers processing. The processing may include
identifying event-related data and/or message-related data that
correspond to process status at the equipment. The equipment social
interpreter application 312 identifies human-readable
interpretation for the message-related data and/or the
event-related data identified in the process parameters and
generate post data for forwarding to a social network service 314.
Further, as part of the processing, the equipment social
interpreter application 312 may provide tags to be included in the
post data. The tags associated with the post data may be used to
identify the equipment that generated the process parameters
associated with the post data, user to which the post data is
directed, event-related information, severity level for any
event-related data contained within the post data, notification
type, etc.
[0034] The social network service (SNS) 314 may store the post data
provided by the equipment social interpreter application 312 in a
data store 320. In some embodiments, the SNS 314 may store the post
data associated with each equipment separately. In alternate
embodiments, the SNS 314 may store the post data directed for each
user separately. In other embodiments, the SNS 314 may store the
post in accordance to the equipment and the targeted user or in
accordance to priority level for event-related data.
[0035] When a user 101 is interested in receiving process status
updates for an equipment, the user accesses the SNS 314 to request
the information. In some embodiment, the user 101 accesses the SNS
314 through the web server 310 and a user client API 302. The user
client API 302 may use any standard, proprietary or non-proprietary
protocol to allow the user to communicate with the SNS 314. In
response to receiving a request from a user 101, the SNS 314 may
authenticate the user 101. Upon successful user authentication, the
SNS 314 may query and receive the relevant post data for the user
101 from the data store 320, which is then posted in a social data
stream for the user 101.
[0036] The postings in the social data stream may be presented in a
format in accordance to the preference specified by the user or in
accordance to information provided in the tags of each posting.
Information provided in the social data stream for the user 101
includes information related to the operational metrics generated
by the one or more equipment during manufacturing process. It is to
be noted that the social data stream for the user 101 may include
post data related to more than one equipment. When more than one
equipment data is included, the post data related to different
equipment may be presented in accordance to the user's interest,
preference, priority level associated with the posting, operation
of the equipment, etc., by elevating or emphasizing postings from
certain ones of the equipment and de-emphasizing postings from
other equipment. The information provided in the post data within
the social data stream may be used by the users to share
information with other users, request or provide assistance for any
trigger event that resulted in failures or errors in certain ones
of the equipment, adjust one or more process inputs for the
equipment identified in the posting or for other equipment to
obtain optimal processing results for better yield.
[0037] FIG. 3 illustrates a simplified block diagram of an example
system architecture identifying various modules used to generate
post data for the process parameters generated by different
equipment, for presenting to users, in one embodiment of the
disclosure. The system includes a server 300 that is interconnected
with a plurality of equipment 103 that are used in manufacturing
semiconductor wafers. The interconnection may be through a wired or
a wireless equipment interface 301 or may be through a first web
server 310a and an equipment client API 304. The equipment 103 may
connect to the first web server 310a of the server 300 over a
network 200, such as the Internet, intranet, virtual private
network, a local area network, a wide area network, a wireless
local area network, etc. The equipment interface 301, the first web
server 310a and the equipment client API 304 are henceforth
referred to as communication interface.
[0038] During a semiconductor wafer manufacturing process, the
equipment 103 may provide process parameters. The process
parameters identify the various metrics observed during operation
of the equipment. For example, the operational metrics may include
temperature, pressure, power supplied, chemistry used, current
generated, plasma density, etc., observed at various stages of the
manufacturing process. In some embodiment, the process parameters
may be obtained through sensors, detectors, etc., disposed in, on
or near the equipment 103. The process parameters are forwarded to
the server 300 through the communication interface for further
processing. An equipment profile manager 308 receives the process
parameters and performs a validation operation. For example, as
part of the validation, the equipment profile manager 308 may
verify to see if the process parameters are from a valid and active
equipment source interfaced with the server. Upon successfully
validating the equipment source, the equipment profile manager 308
may verify to see if the process parameters received are selected
for sharing and if so, determine users or user groups to share the
process parameters. The users are identified based on their
interest, expertise, access specification defined for the
equipment, etc. In some embodiments, the access specification may
be provided in the form of an access control list maintained for
each equipment that is used in the manufacturing process.
[0039] The equipment profile manager 308, upon successful
verification may forward the process parameters along with user
information to an equipment social interpreter application 312 for
further processing. In some embodiments where the process
parameters are received through the first web server 310a, the
equipment profile manager 308 may forward the verified process
parameters and the user information to the equipment social
interpreter application 312 through an equipment client API 304 as
data 10. In some other embodiments, the process parameters may be
received through the first web server 310a and the equipment client
API 304. In such embodiments, the equipment profile manager 308 may
forward the verified process parameters and the user information
directly to the equipment social interpreter application 312 as
data 10. In other embodiments where the process parameters are
received through the equipment interface 301, the equipment profile
manager 308 may forward the verified process parameters and
corresponding user information directly to the equipment social
interpreter application 312 as data 10.
[0040] The equipment social interpreter application 312 examines
data 10 provided by the equipment profile manager 308 to identify
event-related data or message-related data contained within and
processes both to generate human-readable interpretation. The
workings of the equipment social interpreter application 312 will
be explained in more detail with reference to FIG. 4. The processed
event-related data, message-related data and the corresponding
human-readable interpretation are forwarded to a social network
service (SNS) 314 for presenting to one or more users.
[0041] The SNS 314 receives the processed data and engages a post
data manager 314b to store the processed data as post data in a
data store 320. The post data manager 314b may store the processed
data for each equipment separately, for each user separately or may
store generically in a temporal order with the tags identifying the
equipment and the users.
[0042] A user 101 interested in receiving the processed data for
one or more equipment used in the manufacturing of semiconductor
wafers, generates a request using a client device (not shown)
associated with the user 101. The request is forwarded to the SNS
314 over the network 200 and through a second web server 310b. In
some embodiments, the second web server 310b used for forwarding
the request may be separate from the first web server 310a used by
the equipment 103. In these embodiments, the first web server 310a
may be specifically designed for receiving communication from the
equipment and the second web server 310b may be specifically
designed for providing the users with access to the SNS 314 to
enable communication between the users 101 and the SNS 314. In
other embodiments, the second web server 310b and the first web
server 310a, although shown separately, may be part of web server
310 that allows the equipment 103 and the users 101 to access the
server 300 and exchange information related to operation of the
equipment 103.
[0043] The second web server 310b forwards the request from the
user 101 to a user profile manager 306. The user profile manager
306 authenticates the user and identifies the one or more equipment
103 that are associated with the user 101. In some embodiment, user
attributes may be used to validate the user 101 and to associate
different equipment 103 so that information related to the
operational metrics received from different equipment 103 may be
directed appropriately. Some of the attributes used to associate
the users to the equipment may include user's organization, user's
ranking within the organization, user's expertise level, user's
interest based on number and type of interaction detected at prior
postings for the equipment, etc. For example, a user's attributes
may identify a user 101 as an operator in a fabrication facility.
In this case, the user 101 may be authorized to receive information
related to operational metrics of specific ones of the equipment
103 that the user 101 is responsible for managing. A user 101 who
is a manager in the fabrication facility may be authorized to
receive process parameters of all the equipment 103 that are on a
particular floor of the fabrication facility. In another example, a
user 101 who is an expert in equipment 103 used to perform a
particular operation may receive information related to the
operational metrics of the equipment 103 that are used for
performing the particular operation. The validated request is
forwarded by the user profile manager 306 to SNS 314 through a user
client API 302.
[0044] The SNS 314 receives the request from a user 101 and
determines that the request is for process status update for one or
more equipment that the user 101 is associated with and engages a
stream serving module 314a to provide the necessary information.
The stream serving module 314a uses the user attributes identified
from the request and, in turn, sends a request to the data store
320 for requesting the post data for the equipment associated with
the user 101. The stream serving module 314a receives the post data
from the data store 320, formats the post data and provides the
formatted post data to the user 101 in a social data stream 400.
The formatting causes the post data to be presented in the social
data stream of the user in accordance to any one or more of the
user attributes, preferences expressed by the user, notification
type defined in the post data, equipment status, trigger events,
states, etc.
[0045] In some embodiments, the stream serving module 314a may
aggregate information related to the operational metrics generated
by one or more equipment 103 over a period of time and present the
aggregated information to the users in a specific format. For
example, the aggregated information may be used to determine
equipment performance, process yield, number and type of alarms or
other trigger events triggered, etc., associated with each
equipment and may be presented as a plot graph, bar graph, summary,
etc.
[0046] The social data stream provides options to allow users to
interact with one another and to request process parameters of the
other equipment that are similar to a particular equipment the user
is authorized to receive, or related to the particular equipment.
User interactions to the post data are also captured by the SNS 314
and provided as additional postings in the social data streams of
other users that are allowed to or interested in receiving such
information. Information provided through user interactions, for
example, may be used to adjust process inputs to one or more
equipment to influence process operation at the respective
equipment.
[0047] FIG. 4 illustrates various modules within the equipment
social interpreter application 312 that are used in processing the
process parameters received from different equipment to enable
sharing information related to the operation of the equipment with
users that are interested in receiving such data. The equipment
social interpreter application 312 includes an equipment data
parser 312a that receives the data 10 provided by the equipment
profile manager 308 of FIG. 3, and performs a first parse of the
data to ensure that the data is valid data from a valid source.
Upon verification, the equipment data parser 312a passes the parsed
data to a semantic identifier logic 312b. The semantic identifier
logic 312b obtains the parsed data and identifies one or more
event-related data or message-related data contained within. The
parsed data is in raw, machine-data format. As a result, the
semantic identifier logic 312b may examine a portion of the parsed
data (e.g., a string of bits, a chunk of bits, byte, etc.), to
determine if data bits identified in the portion relate to a known
pattern, such as a keyword, a phrase, a trigger event, a code, etc.
In some embodiments, semantic identifier logic 312b may also
identify the corresponding context of the examined portion of the
parsed data. When the data bits contain a known pattern, the
semantic identifier logic 312b will include an identifier for the
known pattern.
[0048] When the examined data bits identify a trigger event, the
semantic identifier logic 312b forwards the bits that identify the
trigger event and the corresponding identifier to an event
processor module 312e for further processing.
[0049] The event processor module 312e may refer to an events
library 312f to obtain information related to the trigger event.
The events library 312f, in one embodiment, may store detailed
information related to various predefined trigger events that are
known or that may be encountered during operation of different
equipment. The information related to the pre-defined trigger
events maintained in the events library 312f may, for example, be
obtained from a manufacturer of the equipment, datasheets related
to the equipment, user manuals, provided by a user, or may be
obtained from other sources. The events library 312f may include a
mapping of the strings of the raw, machine data bits to
corresponding pre-defined trigger events. In some embodiments, in
addition to providing the mapping, the events library 312f may also
include detailed information related to the pre-defined trigger
events in human-readable format. The event processor module 312e
queries the events library 312f, obtains the event-related
information for the trigger event identified in the data bit
string, and includes the event-related information with the data
bit string to generate event-related post data. Along with the
event-related information, the event processor module 312e may
identify and include tags for the identified trigger event in the
post data. The tags included in the post data may be used to
identify the equipment associated with the examined data bit
string, user(s) for presenting information related to the trigger
event, trigger event identifier, severity level, notification type,
etc.
[0050] In some embodiment the events library 312f may just include
a mapping of the bit strings with pre-defined event identifier. In
such embodiments, the event processor module 312e may forward the
trigger event identifier and the data bit string to a message
assembly logic 312c to identify human-readable interpretation of
the trigger event. The function of the message assembly logic 312c
will be explained in detail below.
[0051] When the examined data bits identify a pattern associated
with a phrase, a code, a keyword, etc., related to a message, the
semantic identifier logic 312b may forward the examined data bits
and the corresponding identifier to the message assembly logic 312c
for further processing. The message assembly logic 312c receives
the data bits forwarded by the semantic identifier logic 312b
and/or data bits with event identifier forwarded by the event
processor module 312e, and uses a message library 312d to identify
human-readable interpretation for the pattern of data bits or for
the trigger event identifier. The message library 312d may include
a mapping of human-readable interpretation for different strings of
data bits that are generated by the equipment. The message assembly
logic 312c retrieves the appropriate human-readable interpretation
for the examined data bits from the message library 312d, assembles
them into a coherent message and provides the assembled message as
message-related post data or event-related post data, depending on
which data bits is being processed by the message assembly logic
312c, to a post data manager 314b. In some embodiments, along with
the assembled message, the examined data bits and the relevant tags
may also be included in the event-related or message-related post
data. As with the tags provided by the events library, the tags for
the assembled message may identify the equipment, the user,
notification type, etc.
[0052] The post data manager 314b assembles the human-readable
interpretation of the message-related data (`M`) and the
event-related data (`E`) along with the associated tags to generate
post data. The post data manager 314b forwards the post data to the
SNS 314 for further processing.
[0053] In some embodiment, when a trigger event is included in the
examined data bits, the semantic identifier logic 312b may generate
a notification for sending to the appropriate users. The
notification, for example, may include a notification type, a
severity level, etc., associated with the trigger event. The
notification type may be defined based on the severity level of the
trigger event. For example, when the trigger event identifies a
severe error, the notification type may be a posting and the
semantic identifier logic 312b may generate a notification posting
with high priority level so that the SNS 314 may place the
notification posting at the top of the social data streams of the
appropriate users that are identified for receiving such
notification. Alternately, the notification type may identify
different forms of notification, such as an email notification, a
message chat, a phone call, etc., or combinations of the different
forms, that are directed to one or more devices or accounts
associated with the one or more users identified for receiving such
notification. In some implementations, when the notification is
presented in a post, an email, a message chat, etc., the
notification may include a link to the social data stream of the
respective users. When a user selects the link, the social data
stream of the user is generated with the latest postings for the
equipment related to the user including a posting from the
equipment that generated the data that identified the trigger
event. The postings provided in the social data stream may include
the event-related data and allow the user to interact with other
users to exchange information related to the trigger event. When
the notification is presented as a message chat, the social data
stream may provide an interface to allow the users to chat,
message, or otherwise interact with one another in relation to the
operational metrics information provided in the notification.
[0054] The post data is forwarded to the SNS 314. The SNS 314 will
store the post data in a data store 320 for subsequent processing.
When a request from a user 101 is received at the SNS 314, the user
request is first authenticated and upon successful authentication,
the relevant post data for the user 101 are retrieved from the data
store 320, formatted and presented to the user in a social data
stream in accordance to at least the user's attributes and
preferences. In some embodiments, the stream serving module 314a
may format the post data information for a user based on a user's
level, user's expertise, user's activity status, user's schedule,
user's preferences, etc. For instance, each operator within the
fabrication facility may be provided information related to the
operational metrics of particular equipment that he is responsible
for, in a detailed format to keep the operator updated with the
process status of the particular equipment at different stages of
the process operation that ended in successful or unsuccessful
processing of semiconductor wafer.
[0055] A manager of the fabrication facility may receive a posting
of all equipment that falls under the manager's responsibility. In
the posting provided to the manager, the operational metrics of the
different equipment may be consolidated and presented in a summary
format, for example. In some embodiments, each entry in the
consolidated posting may be expanded to allow the manager to obtain
the detailed information of the equipment similar to what was
provided to the fab operator, if needed.
[0056] The post data presented to the user may include post data
related to more than one equipment. Interactions related to the
post data provided in the social data streams are enabled from the
user and other users and such interactions are updated to the
respective users' social data streams and stored in the data store
320. The information (including post data and user interactions)
provided in the social data stream can be used to match or adjust
process inputs of similar equipment so as to obtain comparable
results, trouble-shoot issues identified by the trigger event, or
may be used as a feed forward information to adjust process inputs
of a second equipment used for subsequent process operation.
[0057] Authentication of a user and verification of which user
needs to be provided with information related to operational
metrics of different equipment may be important, especially in a
fabrication facility that may use proprietary or non-proprietary
equipment from multiple vendors. Even when the assembly plant uses
equipment from a single vendor, providing timely updates for
particular equipment to appropriate users would result in faster
and prompt response from the targeted users. For example, users who
are experts or more familiar with the workings of a particular
equipment would be able to detect potential issues even before they
occur just by looking at the periodic process status updates
provided in the operational metrics by the particular equipment.
Such timely process status updates for an equipment may allow the
user(s) to pro-actively provide solutions to avert issues from
surfacing or provide prompt solutions.
[0058] In some embodiments, the post data provided in the social
data stream of users using the operational metrics generated by the
equipment and the corresponding user interactions may be used to
learn user behavior, draw correlation between historical usage of
equipment with future desired usage, draw correlation between
process inputs to operational metrics of different equipment,
troubleshoot issues encountered in an equipment, etc.
[0059] FIG. 5A illustrates an example social data stream 400 of a
user 101 that is generated by the SNS 314, and includes post data
information related to operational metrics generated at different
equipment, in one embodiment. The social data stream 400 presented
by the SNS 314 of FIGS. 3 and 4 is similar to a social data stream
provided by a social network application except that some of the
postings including the initial posting in the social data stream
400 relates to information related to operational metrics obtained
from an equipment. The social data stream 400 includes user's 101
identification information that is obtained from the user's profile
maintained at the SNS 314. The user's 101 identification
information presented in the social data stream 400 may include a
user's name, user's representative image, user's level in an
organization, etc. In addition to the identification information,
the user's 101 equipment preference may also be identified and
presented alongside the user's 101 identification information. The
user's equipment preference, in some embodiments, may be presented
as a preference list 404. As mentioned earlier, the user's 101
equipment preference may be specified by the user, or may be based
on the user's interactions, expertise level, user's organization,
user's position in the organization, etc.
[0060] The social data stream 400 for user 101 includes an initial
posting 406a that provides information related to operational
metrics generated at equipment, Tripod02. Tripod02 may be one
equipment 103 that the user 101 has shown interest in or is
responsible for within a fabrication facility. The information
presented is a human-readable interpretation of event-related data
or message-related data related to the operational metrics received
from the equipment. In addition to the posting, the social data
stream includes options, such as "Like" option, "Comment" option,
hash tags option, etc., for user interaction. The social data
stream may also include a search option 414 to allow the user to
search for information related to equipment, users, hash tags, etc.
The social data stream 400 of the user 101, in some embodiment, may
also include a posting 406b with information related to operational
metrics of a second equipment, Tripod06. The Tripod06 equipment may
have similar characteristics as the Tripod02 equipment that the
user 101 has expressed interest in or it may be one of the
equipment from the user 101's preference list 404. In one
embodiment, the postings from different equipment and user
interaction are presented in the social data stream 400 of user 101
in a temporal order (for example, from the oldest to the latest).
In one embodiment, the information provided in the posting 406b may
be related to a trigger event that is identified to be low in the
severity level. As a result, the posting 406b continues to be
presented in the temporal order followed for the user 101. In
response to receiving the posting 406b, a second user 101, Darth
V., may have responded with his posting 406c seeking information
for resolving the underlying issue that caused the trigger event
identified in posting 406b. The second user 101 may be another
operator in the fabrication facility in which Tripod06 is
operating, and may be authorized to receive the operational metrics
of the second equipment, Tripod06. In response to the second user's
posting 406c, other users including the first user 101 may interact
through their own postings or by selecting the "Comment" option.
The user interaction received from different users, in this
embodiment, will be updated in the social data stream 400 of user
101 and used to influence process input of the second equipment to
resolve the issue identified in the trigger event.
[0061] FIG. 5B illustrates an example social data stream 400 of the
user 101 when the "Comment" option is selected. The comment option
may be used to exchange information related to the posting for the
operational metrics generated by an equipment, rate the posting,
provide feedback ("Like" or "Dislike") for the posting, etc. The
comments provided in the comment section are updated to other
related users social data streams, in substantial real time, so
that the other users can view, provide additional comment or, in
some instances, use the information provided in the comment to
adjust process inputs for the equipment related to the posting or
for a different equipment.
[0062] FIG. 5C illustrates an example social data stream 400 of a
user 101 with additional postings being added to the social data
stream, in one embodiment. The additional postings may be generated
by other users in response to postings related to the operational
metrics originating from one equipment, in response to interaction
by other users, or by other equipment. For example, as illustrated
in FIG. 5C, the additional posting 406a-1, 406a-2, are generated by
other users 101 (C-3P0, Yoda) in response to the initial posting
406a related to the operational metrics originating from Tripod02.
In addition to user interactions related to postings from
equipment, Tripod02, additional postings related to operational
metrics of Tripod03 equipment is also included in the user 101's
social data stream 400. In one embodiment, the additional posting
may identify a trigger event that may or may not require immediate
attention. When a trigger event is identified, the additional
posting may be presented in accordance to severity level associated
with the trigger event. In the example social data stream 400 of
user 101 illustrated in FIG. 5C, the additional posting from
Tripod03 identifies a trigger event that has caused a severe error.
As a result, the posting from Tripod03 is elevated to a higher
position (i.e., top) in the social data stream 400 so as to draw
the attention of the user 101. Alternately, when the trigger event
is non-critical, the additional posting may be presented in the
social data stream in an ascending or descending temporal order.
FIG. 5C illustrates the postings from oldest to latest order except
when a trigger event is detected at which time the posting with the
trigger event is posted at the top of the social data stream
400.
[0063] The various embodiments discussed herein provide a social
interaction application that allows the equipment to provide the
process status updates during a manufacturing process in social
data streams and the user to interact with one another to seek
information and/or to share their knowledge in relation to the
received process status updates. The format and options provided in
the social data streams are familiar to the users and includes an
interface where the novice and expert users can come together to
exchange useful information with regards to effective operation of
the equipment used in the semiconductor manufacturing process.
[0064] It should be noted that although various embodiments have
been discussed herein in relation to a plurality of equipment that
are used for manufacturing semiconductor wafers, the embodiments
are not restricted to semiconductor manufacturing process but can
be extended to include any manufacturing process. As a result, the
plurality of parameters that are obtained from the equipment may
relate to operational metrics generated at each of the plurality of
equipment during a manufacturing process, and the users are
provided details of the operational metrics generated at each
equipment during the manufacturing process, in their respective
social data stream.
[0065] FIG. 6 illustrates an example flow of operations for a
method operated on a server that allows sharing of information
related to operation of different equipment used in manufacturing
semiconductor wafers, in one embodiment. The process begins at
operation 610, wherein plurality of equipment is interfaced with
the server. The server may be part of a local area network, a wide
area network, the Internet, a cloud network, a private network,
etc. The interfacing may use a standard protocol or proprietary
equipment interface protocol. The interfacing enables receiving a
plurality of process parameters including operational metrics
associated with operation of each of the plurality of equipment. As
illustrated in operation 620, the server receives a plurality of
parameters from the equipment, during operation of the equipment.
The operational metrics included in the process parameters of each
equipment are processed to identify event-related data or
message-related data and to generate human-readable interpretation
for the same, as illustrated in operation 630.
[0066] Users authorized to receive information related to the
operational metrics generated by each of the plurality of
equipment, is determined, as illustrated in operation 640. The
human-readable interpretation for the operational metrics of each
equipment is forwarded to a social network service, as illustrated
in operation 650. The human-readable interpretation is used to
perform a posting operation to social data streams associated with
the identified one or more users. The operational metrics from the
plurality of equipment received over time are managed so as to
provide timely updates to the respective users, as illustrated in
operation 660. The timely updates are provided as additional
postings in the corresponding social data streams of the users.
Information provided in the postings and/or additional postings may
be used by the users to interact with one another to request and
receive information that can be used to resolve any issues
identified in the postings.
[0067] FIG. 7 illustrates an example flow of operations for a
method operated on a server that is used for sharing information
related to operation of different equipment used in manufacturing
semiconductor wafers, in an alternate embodiment. The process
begins at operation 710, wherein the server is interfaced with a
plurality of equipment to allow process parameters associated with
operation of each of a plurality of equipment interfaced with a
server to be received. The server may be part of a network in which
the equipment and users are interfaced with the server. The
plurality of parameters includes operational metrics generated at
each of the plurality of equipment during processing of the
semiconductor wafers. During operation, a plurality of process
parameters including operational metrics generated at the plurality
of equipment are received, as illustrated in operation 720. The
process parameters of first equipment are processed to identify
event-related data, message-related data contained within and to
obtain human-readable interpretation, as illustrated in operation
730.
[0068] Users authorized to receive information related to the
operational metrics of the first equipment are identified, as
illustrated in operation 740. A posting operation is performed to
social data streams associated with the identified users, wherein
the posting includes the human-readable interpretation, and, in
some embodiments, corresponding event-related data, message-related
data related to the operational metrics of the first equipment, as
illustrated in operation 750. Based on information of the first
equipment provided in the posting, one or more process inputs for a
second equipment may be identified and adjusted, as illustrated in
operation 760. The adjustment of the process inputs of the second
equipment are used influence the processing of the semiconductor
wafers using the second equipment.
[0069] The foregoing description of the embodiments has been
provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not
intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual
elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not
limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are
interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if
not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in
many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure
from the disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be
included within the scope of the disclosure.
[0070] Although the foregoing embodiments have been described in
some detail for purposes of clarity of understanding, it will be
apparent that certain changes and modifications can be practiced
within the scope of the appended claims. Accordingly, the present
embodiments are to be considered as illustrative and not
restrictive, and the embodiments are not to be limited to the
details given herein, but may be modified within their scope and
equivalents of the claims.
* * * * *